1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to video on demand (VOD) systems, and more particularly to emailing indexes of VOD program content.
2. Background Information
With the evolution of video and other media towards video on demand (VOD), distribution of television (TV) content is changing. In one scenario, VOD systems may incorporate streaming of “library” files that contain TV programs, Karaoke files, music, etc. These files may likely be fairly large, depending on the quality of the file. A content provider will store all of the supplied content on a database. Any user wanting to view a TV broadcast needs to establish a connection between their viewing device and the provider's server. The video server sends the content, in a compressed form, to a viewing device, such as a set-top box (STB) connected to a video display device, such as a monitor or television. The STB would then decode the content and transmit the decoded content to the video display device.
The user's STB would be capable of storing part or all of a TV program in a memory. The user can select any movie or program from a selection menu, and retain complete video stream control. Making use of non-linear digital editing, or non-sequential access, the user will then be able to “slow rewind,” “fast rewind,” “slow forward,” “fast forward,” or “pause” the viewing of the program. Because of the size of the viewing program, and due to intellectual property rights of the owners of the content, saving or copying a content for later viewing by others may not be practical, and may result in violation of intellectual property laws.